Footprints of Blood
by TheDirtyTruth
Summary: Detective Kevin Ryan has just broken up with his long term girlfriend, Jenny, who he found was cheating on him. Taryn Blake is the new detective at the 12th Precinct, a natural rebel and joker. Soon the whole team become involved in a case that is far more complex and dangerous than they ever imagined. Can the team solve the case, and can Taryn mend Ryan's broken heart? Ryan/OC
1. Meeting The Team

Ugh. 7:00 am. How can people get up this early? But, I have to get up; it's my first day at a brand new job. A job I can't lose. I dragged myself out of my bed, and checked myself in the wardrobe mirror.

"God, I look like I have been dragged through a hedge backward." I muttered to myself, and trudged to the kitchen of my upmarket Manhattan apartment, and poured myself some cereal. After wolfing down a bowl, I went to get dressed.

"Damn office clothes." I said out loud. My mum had advised her on how to dress 'appropriately', but all that disappeared from my young mind. I put on one of my favourite tops, and my trusty black leather studded ankle boots. After another half hour of getting ready, I locked my apartment door behind me and skipped down the staircase. I gathered my helmet, and swung my leg over my motorcycle. I revved the engine, and rode into the New York skyline.

"Ugh, there's nothing to do." Ryan complained.

"I know." Esposito groaned.

"You can always help with the paperwork..." Beckett began.

"Um, no." Ryan interrupted her.

"I have the coffee!" Castle beamed.

"Great." Beckett smiled at Castle. Ryan and Esposito raised their eyebrows at each other.

"Team! Gather round!" Gates shouted at Castle, Beckett, Ryan and Esposito.

"What's up, boss?" Esposito asked.

"Not so long ago I advertised for a new team member, and thankfully I have found a suitable candidate, who you shall meet today." Gates spoke.

"Wait, What? We don't need a new team member!" said Beckett, sounding annoyed.

"Er, yes, yes you do. All of you are working overtime." Gates continued.

"Then how come you didn't tell me about it?" Beckett enquired.

"Because I knew you would be pissed about it." Gates said rather plainly. Esposito, Ryan and Castle could just about hold back their laughter.

"So, when are we meeting him?" Esposito asked Captain Gates.

"Who said I was a he?" I said from behind them. The others turned around.

I walked up to my new colleagues' 12th Precinct desks that were loaded with paperwork

"Whoa, um..." One was virtually speechless. All of them were. Another's mouth was hanging open in that typical movie style way, and another almost spat out his coffee. Gates just smiled.

"Are you British?" A man who I recognised as author Richard Castle suddenly burst out, smiling.

"Yes, yes I am." I replied.

"Everyone, this is the new now Detective Taryn Blake." Gates spoke rather proudly.

"Nice to meet you all." I said, shaking everyone's hand.

"I'm Javier Esposito."

"Richard Castle."

"Kate Beckett."

"I'm, um, Kevin Ryan." Ryan spoke, blushing slightly, making me giggle a bit.

"So what part of the UK are you from?" Beckett asked.

"The south, near Brighton. About 75 odd miles out of London." I spoke a bit dismissively.

"I've been to Brighton!" Castle almost shouted.

"Really?"

"Yeah! It's the town with the pier and the funny rock stuff!"

"Yep, that's the one." Blake laughed at Castle's enthusiasm.

"So, what university did you go to?" Beckett asked, before being interrupted by Ryan.

"Trust you to ask about education." He scoffed, but that just made Blake giggle even more.

"I went to Cambridge." Blake answered quietly.

"WHAT!?" Castle shouted. "SERIOUSLY?"

"Yep. Got my PhD in maths and forensic sciences, became a detective in London then got transferred here." I finished.

"Awesome." Esposito spoke, looking clearly impressed.

"You must be really smart then." Ryan burst, before looking extremely embarrassed at his very stupid outburst. Esposito then erupted into fits of laughter, and I started giggling again. Ryan turned bright red, and looked at his feet. He looked up at me, and started examining my outfit. I was wearing black skinny jeans, and a slightly translucent burgundy button up collared sleeveless vest with a black swallow pattern, a black leather jacket and black studded ankle boots. I left my long, wavy dip dyed brown hair loose and had done my makeup naturally, apart from some eyeliner flicks.

Suddenly the phone rang, making everyone jump. Beckett quickly scooped up the phone and answered it.

"Beckett," She answered "Right. We'll be there." She hung up.

"Right, we're up."

"Okay, we have a new member so me, Beckett and Castle will ride in Beckett's car." Gates ordered. Ryan knew what this meant, and he blushed even more.

"That leaves me, Blake and Ryan in my car then." Esposito smiled, laughing at Ryan. Ryan coughed.

"So where is this murder then?" He said, quickly changing the subject.

"Queens. Behind an abandoned warehouse in a dodgy alleyway." Beckett answered.

"Alright team, LET'S GO!" Castle shouted.

"Never do that again…"

"Yeah dude, it's embarrassing…"

A few minutes later and I, Esposito and Ryan were in the car, driving to Queens.

"So Taryn, new to NYC?" Esposito asked me.

"I moved here about two weeks ago." I answered. Ryan looked very uncomfortable.

"Cool. I've been to England. It's pretty cool. You miss it?" Esposito asked again.

"Yeah, I do miss it. Especially as I hardly know anyone here."

"Yeah… Oh, we're here!" Esposito said quite cheerfully.

"Ready for your first case Blake?" Ryan asked me.

"Ready as ever." I replied, winking at Ryan, making him blush again.

"Bloody hell!" I exclaimed, as me, Ryan and Esposito entered the creepy alleyway. There was blood sprayed and smeared all over the walls, floors and dustbins, and the body itself had been hacked to indistinguishable pieces.

"Ugh, that's not a pretty sight." Ryan groaned, as he stumbled backwards a bit in shock.

"Oh, it can't be that bad." Esposito sighed, just as he entered the alley. "Whoa." His eyes widened at the sight.

"Horrible, isn't it?" Castle examined, pulling a face and walking up to me and the others.

"What a case to begin with on my first day." I groaned. Beckett coughed, meaning that we should start actually working. I walked over to the 'body', and pulled a face.

"Excuse me? I'm not sure if you're allowed here." A voice said from behind me.

"Oh, I'm a new member of the team. It's my first case." I replied, showing my new badge Gates had given to me earlier.

"Oh. Okay then. Gates didn't tell me we had a new member of the precinct…" The woman sighed.

"She didn't tell anyone." I chuckled, as I pulled on some blue latex gloves.

"I'm Lanie." She told me.

"Nice to meet you Lanie, I'm Taryn." I said, extending my hand. She was about to take it when she realised her hand was covered in the unfortunate victim's blood. We both looked at it and smiled, as her hand retreated back to her clipboard.

"I'm not gonna even start on your accent." She chuckled.

"Good. I've had it up to here with-" But I was cut short of moaning by Beckett striding up to myself and Lanie.

"Got an ID yet?" She asked Lanie.

"No. No wallet, no licence, and we can't exactly send out pictures…" Lanie trailed off, waving a hand in dismissal.

"We need an ID and fast. Ryan, were there any witnesses?"

"No." He replied, scribbling something in his notebook. Beckett pinched the bridge of her nose in annoyance, which I'm sure is a habit.

"Any security cameras?"

"No."

"So we have a homicide victim we don't know the name of, and no witnesses or evidence." She said in annoyance.

"Maybe we just have to look at the finer details." I suggested hopefully. By this time the whole team had assembled around me and Lanie.

"Like what details?" Esposito scoffed.

"Well… look at the way that foot is positioned. Lanie, has anything been moved since the police have got here?"

"No, Why?"

"Well. Look at the angle. It indicates the victim was standing about here." I said, demonstrating my findings by walking over to one of the feet and standing by it.

"It's resting on its left side, which indicates the attacker's first blow was to the victim's right side." I explained.

"Wow, amazing Taryn. But I don't see how that helps us…" Beckett started, but I carried on.

"The attacker was most likely standing here, where the ground has been slightly swiped so the footprints have been concealed." I continued.

"Isn't it also funny that there are no security cameras around? Though there are cameras around these two corners, the murder took place on this very spot, where no cameras could film the offence."

"So what you are saying is…" Castle began, but I had a feeling he already knew what I was getting at.

"This was a professional job." I finished.

"How can you be sure?" Beckett asked.

"Well, there is what I just said, or the fact that not many people in New York own a samurai sword." I sighed.

"Oh yeah…"

"Yeah indeed."

"You're just like Sherlock Holmes!" Castle exclaimed.

"I try my best."

"How could I have missed that…"Beckett sighed.

"Well, I didn't graduate top of my class accidently." I replied, winking at Detective Ryan, who blushed again. God, he was so cute when he did that.

"But we're still not any closer to identifying our victim." Beckett said.

Everybody looked at me.

"Not my area of expertise." I shrugged.

They didn't look away.

"Well, you could take prints off the uh, remaining thumb, and run it through the data base." I suggested.

"That could take days."

"That's our best shot at the moment."

"We need to identify them **_now_**."

"Oh really? I would like to see you picking through dead bodies trying to identify them…"

Everybody was arguing all at once, so I looked over at Castle and rolled my eyes. He returned the gesture with a mocking imitation of Beckett.

"Castle! What are you doing?"

"Nuthin'." He replied.

"Blake!"

"Yes?" I answered to the shrill voice of Gates.

"I'm sorry you have to deal with this." She said, motioning towards my arguing colleagues. "Have you got anything yet?" She asked.

"Yeah. Ask Ryan, I think he's written down everything I've said today." I giggled.

Gates chuckled.

"Yes, I can't help but notice his awkwardness around you-" Gates started, but stopped. The arguing had got louder, and Gates sighed.

"Okay guys! I think we should head back to the Precinct now, and piece together some leads." She shouted.

"But we don't have any…" Castle grinned, winking in my direction.

"Enough! You're all acting like 5 year olds!" She shouted, waving her arms around in exaggeration. "Now go! I'm sure forensics will come up with something…" She murmured, before she, Castle and Beckett trudged back to their vehicle.

I caught up with Ryan and Esposito, as they made their way back up to Esposito's police car.

"So, Taryn, how do you do all that?" Esposito asked me.

"It's my curse. I see everything."

"What do you see about me?" Ryan asked, quite innocently.

"Judging by your straight posture and your fast walking stride, you went to a school that focused on discipline, so maybe a Catholic school. You also style your hair with L'Oreal hair gel, which can also mean you were brought up with a number of sisters, because most men would use Shockwaves because of the psychological impact of the TV adverts." I examined.

Ryan stopped dead in his tracks.

"How… did…" He looked utterly shocked, and was not helped when Esposito burst into laughter.

"L'Oreal? Seriously bro?" He laughed. Ryan started walking again, and soon enough we reached the car. I climbed in the back and shut the car door, and Ryan climbed in next to me.

"You know you're tall enough to sit in the front now." Esposito laughed.

"Doesn't matter." Ryan muttered.

"Sorry if I offended you." I whispered into Ryan's ear.

"It's not you. What you did was amazing. It's him." He whispered back, pointing at Esposito, who was clearly proud of his "You know you're tall enough to sit in the front now" joke.

"Love is in the air… do do do do do dooo…" Esposito hummed, looking at us in the mirror.

It was my time to get pissed, and I kicked the back of Esposito's seat, which pushed him into the wheel, which triggered the horn, which echoed through the streets, along with mine and Ryan's laughter.


	2. Back at the Precinct

"So… Taryn." Esposito began.

"Yes?"

"What do you think on good ol' New York?" Esposito asked me.

"I think your accents are funny." I replied.

"Really? Because you accent is definitely funnier!" Ryan laughed.

"You just say things differently."

"So do you! When you said 'database', I was like, what the hell." Esposito grinned.

"Well, how do you say data then?"

"Data." Esposito said in his thick American accent. I couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"What? That's how I say it too. Data." Ryan was slightly offended.

"Data." I said, articulating the word carefully.

"Data." They both said, making it sound like 'darla'.

"DATA!" I shouted in my very distinct accent.

"DARLA!"

"DAY-TER"

"DAR-LA"

We continued arguing like that until we finally arrived back at the Precinct. We were still continuing our shouting match when we were getting out the car, and slamming the doors behind us while screaming.

"Guys! What are you arguing about?" Castle whined.

"She says data funny." Esposito smirked.

"I do not!" I retorted, throwing myself into my, ahem, new, chair.

"Data." Castle said, again in an American accent.

"Day-ta." I replied, making Castle do this awkward little snort.

I pulled a face at all three of them.

I turned around to face the whiteboard where Beckett was drawing a map of the dodgy alleyway and surrounding streets, and then drew a timeline.

"Lanie says that the victim was killed around 2am, making the kill zone here." She told us.

"Always 2am…" Castle muttered. I started spinning around on my chair, much to the annoyance of Esposito, who kept on being hit by my legs.

"Blake!"

"Yes?" I said with a start.

"You said it looked like a professional job."

"Uh, yes."

"I BET THEY'RE A SPY!" Castle burst out randomly.

"No Castle…" Beckett sighed. "Spies are not like James Bond or Jason Bourne!"

"Well, we can't rule it out…" I murmured, coming to the defence of the author.

"Yeah, I mean, we even haven't identified them yet." Ryan also came on the defensive.

"I KNOW!" Beckett shouted. Ryan flinched. She is a bit scary.

"We can't do anything if we don't know who the victim's name." Beckett sighed.

Gates, who had apparently been listening the whole time, spoke up.

"Beckett has a point. Until we get those prints we can't do anything. Unless you have paperwork to do, I suggest you finish your shifts early and go home." She looked over at the mounds of papers on everyone's desk. "And if we can't solve this case, and it is indeed a professional job, we would have to alert the FBI." She finished.

Beckett sighed in defeat and retreated back to her desk, where Castle followed her. Esposito also sighed and went back to his desk, where he seemed to have a substantially larger pile of sheets of paper than Beckett and Ryan. Ryan swivelled around to face his computer, leaving me spinning around in front of the board in my swivel chair.

I guess I started to annoy my colleagues when Esposito snapped his pencil in two and pushed me next to Ryan, who was almost finished with his stack of papers. I leant my elbows on the table, as he looked up and quickly looked down at the paper he was going through again. I groaned and spun around again, throwing my head back dramatically.

"Bored, Taryn?" Ryan asked, still not looking up from his papers.

"Ye-ees." I moaned.

"I'm almost done." He said, but was barely audible.

Castle then swivelled over in his own swivel chair, with two large paper cups of coffee in both of his hands. Ryan gratefully took one, and Castle gulped a large amount of the liquid down.

"God, what is it with you Americans and coffee?" I asked, sounding disgusted to the others. Castle shrugged.

"I actually don't know. What is it with you Brits and tea?" He asked.

I narrowed my eyes and growled mockingly, making Castle laugh again.

"Aaaah…" Castle sighed, sipping his coffee while spinning around on his chair.

I also started spinning around, and our legs bumped into each other, before I launched my feet of Ryan's desk and crashed into Castle, sending him into Esposito's desk, and making Esposito choke on his coffee. We couldn't help but burst into fits of laughter, and Castle started spinning around again, but this time making very peculiar noises.

"Oooo-eeeee-ooooo-eeee-oooo" He went.

"Castle," Beckett began. He turned around to face her. "Shut up." She said, as Castle held up his hands in mock surrender. I laughed again, as I swivelled round to face Ryan again, who was now finished.

"Taryn, why didn't you go home ages ago?" Beckett asked me.

"I live in a cardboard box." I whispered in mock sadness.

I looked at the clock, and realised it was time for lunch.

"TIME FOR LUNCH!" I shrieked, and Esposito immediately jumped up from his chair.

"Yay! Break time!" He said while doing some weird sort of victory dance.

"You know, I know this great Italian place just a couple of blocks from here…" Castle started.

"Actually, I was just gonna get a hot dog from the stand at the corner, Castle." Beckett smiled.

"Uh, yeah Castle." I said sarcastically.

"Say my name again!" Castle ordered, his eyes lighting up.

"What?"

"Say it!"

"Castle." I told him, pulling on my jacket.

"Ha! Car-stle." He said in my accent. I rolled my eyes.

"You know, I have had it up to here with jokes about my accent." I said, holding my hand up to demonstrate.

"Sorry. I just absolutely love your accent." Castle admitted.

"Yeah. It's cute." Kevin spoke up from his desk, but as soon as he said that we all whipped around to face him and he blushed.

"Cute?" I asked.

"Um, well, uh, you… are a… grown woman, and… uh..." He stammered, but regretted saying anything. I giggled, making him go a deep crimson. I loved doing that to him.

Esposito could just about hold back his laughter at Ryan's comment, before his growling stomach reminded him that he was hungry. Starving, in fact.

"So guys, we're gonna get hot dogs?" He asked and grabbed his wallet and jacket.

"Yep."

"Sure."

"Ugh."

"What?"

"I don't like hot dogs." I pulled a face.

"How can you not like hot dogs?"

"I… just don't." I answered. "Only if you like rat meat." I muttered, but I don't think anyone heard me.

"So, where're you gonna get lunch then?"

"There's a British fish and chips shop not far from here."

"Fish and Chips?" Esposito asked in a mock British accent.

"It's so good."

"Yeah, well I'm sticking to hot dogs." Beckett sighed, as she, Castle and Esposito started walking to the elevator.

"You coming Ryan?" Esposito called.

"Uh, nah." Ryan called back.

"So, you want Fish and Chips?"

"Um, yeah. Why not?" He awkwardly laughed.

"Okay then." I smiled as we walked to the elevator.

"This is the right lift, right?" I asked.

"Lift?"

"Elevator, whatever you want to call it."

"You call it a lift?" Ryan laughed.

"You dare mock me? I'm British, thank you very much." I cried.

"Aren't I learning a lot about England, today?" Ryan laughed, and winked. He was suddenly so confident without the others around that my insides went all funny. And this time, it was me who blushed.


	3. Fish & Chips

"What other British words should I know about then?" Ryan asked me.

"Well, there is British slang which I sometimes use, but you're just going to have to look out." I replied.

"We also have American slang."

"Oh really?"

"Oh yes."

"I suppose I'll pick it up."

"Sure you will…"

"Excuse me?"

"Tell me more British slang. I like the sound of your voice."

"What?"

"I meant, uh…" He was being all awkward again. Aw, it's so cute!

"Well, in England, especially London, you abbreviate abbreviations. Like 'isn't it' gets squashed and becomes 'innit'."

"Innit?"

"Yes. Although it's used more rhetorically and not grammatically correct, like, I've had four pints and no dinner, innit."

After I said this Ryan burst out laughing.

"So, like, I just had a couple of drinks and got drunk, innit." Ryan said, making me laugh.

"Kind of. But it's funny because your American accent totally ruins it!" I laughed.

"Okay then. I just had a couple of drinks and got drunk, innit!" Ryan shouted in a cockney accent, much to the stares of our fellow pedestrians.

"Congratulations! You are now a true Londoner!" I exclaimed, shaking Ryan's hand mockingly.

We both laughed.

"Have you ever had fish and chips before, then?" I asked Ryan.

"Nope." He shrugged.

"You're gonna like it though."

"Hope so."

"Here we are." I said, as Ryan held the door open for me. What a gentleman.

"Hey Finn." I sang as I went up to the counter.

"Afternoon Taryn." Finn called from the kitchen.

Finn is your stereotypical Scot, bright fiery red hair, bushy eyebrows, and a thick, highland accent.

He came out wiping his hands.

"And who's this?" He asked, nodding towards Ryan.

"Work colleague." I replied.

"Finn." He introduced himself to Ryan.

"Kevin." Ryan smiled. Right, I forgot he had a first name.

"Want the usual, Taryn?" Finn asked.

"Yep. You want cod, Ryan?" I asked, uh, Kevin.

"Ah, right, surnames in the force…" Finn muttered.

"Uh, yeah. That sounds good." Ryan replied. Aw, he was so polite.

"Two cods, then, Finn." I told the Scot.

"Two cods coming up." He said before getting to work.

"Right, tomato ketchup." I said to myself, before reaching for the condiments. Ryan laughed behind me.

"I know, I know. I say it funny."

"Yep. Toe-may-toe." He told me.

"Toe-mar-toe." I told him. We were face to face. I looked into his sparkling blue eyes… I think I drowned in them because Finn reminded me that he was still there by speaking up.

"It's not as bad as what the Essex girls say." He murmured.

"Essex girls?" Ryan asked.

"They probably say it like tu-ma-te." I told him.

"Here you are. Two cod and chips." Finn said, before handing our food to us. I paid and saw Ryan looking at the newspaper wrapping and grinning.

"It's tradition, sonny." Finn smirked before taking a cigarette out of his pocket. "Goin' fer a fag break." He told us.

"Fag is…"

"Slang for a cigarette." I told him, putting his mind out of what Americans mean by fags.

"So! Eat it!" I urged him. He got one end of the cod and bit into it (after smothering it in tomato ketchup) His face lit up.

"Mmmm… that's good." He murmured before taking another bite.

"Told you." I said to him before taking a bite. "Mm, reminds me of home." I murmured.

Ryan looked at me enquiringly.

"Me and my family lived on the south coast. My grandparents lived in London, my aunt and uncle lived in Birmingham, and my other aunt, uncle and cousins lived in Newcastle." I told him.

"Awesome. I grew up in the Bronx." Ryan told me in between bites of cod.

"Yeah. I lived in a fairly large seaside town. Virtually no crime rate."

"Lucky." He laughed. "How did you become inspired to become a cop then? I mean, being in a town with no crime."

"A TV show inspired me. Life on Mars." I said rather proudly.

"'S that about?"

"A cop in London is hit by a car and transported back to 1974, or 3 I can't remember. Anyway, it's a real culture shock for him. It's hilarious. Especially when his boss throws the suspects around and they have to use the lost and found room to interview people." I tell Ryan. We walk in silence until we get to the doors of the Precinct.

"Ah, the 'lift' as you call it."

"Shut up, Honeymilk."

After I said that his expression changes. To hurt.

"How did you…" He stammers, clearly hurt by my comment.

"Esposito." I say. "What's wrong with it?"

"Just… former girlfriend stuff."

"Oh. I'm sorry, I didn't know…"

"I know. Javier's getting it, though." Ryan growls, making me laugh. "Toe-may-toe." He mutters, before I punch him in the arm.

"TOE-MAY-TOE!"

"TOM-AR-TOE!"

"TOE-MAY-TOE!"

"TOM-AR-TOE!"

"TOE-MAY-TOE!"

"TOM-AR-TOE!"

We shout at each other as we walk back to our desks.

"Ah, still quarrelling about the English language, I see." Castle comments, hot dog in hand. "I also see that you picked up the morning paper." He remarks.

I throw myself into my swivel chair again, stuffing my face with chips, or 'fries' as Ryan calls them.

"That looks good." Beckett says looking at our lunch, and then back down at her half-eaten hot dog.

"It's so good." Ryan says with his mouth full.

Without warning Esposito reaches into the newspaper cone and pulls out a chip and a bit of cod. Ryan slaps his hand away but Esposito is already examining the food. He puts it into his mouth and looks pleasantly surprised.

"Is it good?" Castle asks.

Esposito nods enthusiastically before trying to steal more of Ryan's lunch, but this time Ryan successfully slaps his hand away.

"Dammit." Esposito curses.

"Next time, bro." Ryan sighs, before stuffing his face again.

"Any breaks in the case while we were gone?" I ask Beckett. She shakes her head. I look down at my lunch again.

"Actually, now we do." Lanie calls from across the room.

"You have an ID?" Beckett asks, suddenly a lot happier.

"Yep. Taryn was right. I ran it through the database and there was a match."

"Hell yeah." I muttered, and winked at Ryan again. It's becoming our thing now, isn't it?

"However…" Lanie began.

"However what, Lanie?" Beckett enquired.

"It wasn't in the US Database. It was the UK Database." Lanie sighed.

Everybody turned to look at me.

"Why's everyone looking at me? I ain't got anything to do with it." I scoffed.

"Sorry, reflex." Castle laughed, before turning back to Lanie.

"Anyway, the name of the victim is Rufus Morgan." Lanie finished.

"Right, run Rufus Morgan through the database. Is he a British national?" Beckett asked Lanie.

"Um, kinda. He has British and Russian descent."

"Okay. Now we have to find out why Rufus was found dead in a New York alleyway. Right Castle, does he sound like a spy now?" Beckett mockingly asked him.

"Actually, he kinda does." Ryan spoke up. "He has literally disappeared off the face of the Earth for the past 3 years. No telephone calls, credit card transactions…" Ryan trailed off, still eating.

"Okay. That is suspicious." Beckett spoke.

"No shi-" I began but was interrupted by a dirty look from her.

"I want everything we can get on Rufus Morgan! Next of kin, spouses, former houses, favourite colour, everything!" Beckett shouted.

Because I didn't have anything on my desk, I sat next to Ryan, who scanned literally every database in the world.

"Day-ta base." I smirked.

"Dar-la base." He replied.


	4. Shut Up

_**Sorry for taking sooo long. I've been busy with my other stories, and I guess ratings and reviews motivate me for writing, which is why this story hasn't really been my priority.**_

* * *

"Right, Rufus Morgan, 34, disappeared three years ago. Was born in Britain but moved to Russia when he turned eight. Moved back to the UK five years ago. Has been missing ever since." Ryan told Beckett.

"Nothing stands out?" She asked hopefully.

"Nothing." Ryan replied grimly.

"Isn't it funny how he has been missing for the last three years since moving back to the UK five years ago?" I asked while spinning around on my chair. "I think I remember reading an article in the paper about him a few years back." I strained my mind for any valuable information, but deciding I didn't remember anything I pulled myself over to Ryan's desk and brought up the internet to search for the article.

"Espo, any leads?" Beckett asked, pacing the room.

"Nope. Seems the perfect crime." Esposito, who was drinking another cup of coffee, called from his desk.

"Ah ha!" I found the article on _The Daily Telegraph _website. I started reading.

"Rufus Morgan, from Croydon, that's an area of London by the way, disappeared last Thursday night. Friends and family are appealing for any information on his disappearance." I stopped reading.

"Okay Ryan, try contacting Morgan's family. See if they have information on his UK disappearance." Beckett ordered.

"Wait! There's more!" I began and scrolled down to an article that was linked to the previous one. "Rufus Morgan is feared dead after remains were found in a canal near the Thames. Morgan has been missing since the 15th of April. The police are not treating the death as suspicious and are not seeking anyone in connection to the body found."

"But he isn't dead!" Castle exclaimed. "So whose remains were found in the canal?"

"That, Castle, is the million dollar question." I told him. Castle chuckled. "Yes, I know I say your name funny." I rolled my eyes as Ryan smirked beside me.

"I'll get Gates to call the Metropolitan Police to explain everything. Let's hope they have extra information we can use." Beckett declared and made her way to Gates' office.

"I'll try and contact Morgan's family." Ryan said to no-one in particular before turning back to his computer.

"I'll go and visit Lanie to see if Forensics and the autopsy have come up with anything else." Esposito told us before yawning and getting up from his chair. I looked at Castle enquiringly. "I guess that leaves us then." The author said and shrugged. I sighed, grabbed his arm and pulled him up.

"Where are we going?" He asked with a confused look on his face.

"Back to the crime scene." I replied. Castle looked over at Beckett in Gates' office and looked back at me again.

"Okay then." He smiled with a twinkle in his eye.

"Hey! Where are you guys going?" Ryan asked and looked up from his computer.

"Uh, nowhere of importance." I replied and dragged Castle to the lift/elevator/whatever-you-want-to-call-it. "You're gonna have to drive." I told him.

"What? Why me?"

"I don't have my licence yet." I laughed.

"Tourists." He muttered. We pushed through the doors of the Precinct and Castle led the way to his very expensive looking car. I climbed into the passenger seat and did my seatbelt, as did Castle too. "Let's get ready to rumble." He said in a mock gruff voice and put on a pair of sunglasses. "So, what borough do you live in Miss England?" He asked.

"Uh…"

"You don't know, do you?"

"Nope."

Castle laughed. "Of course." he sighed. "But if you don't know where you live, how can you be a detective?"

"I've already told you. I was transferred. I've only been here a week." I replied, slightly miffed.

"Okay… okay…" He sighed. "Where did you live in London?"

"Central." I answered. "I had a flat near Scotland Yard which saved me some exercise."

"I live in Manhattan." Castle boasted.

"Really? The rent must be astronomical."

"Oh it is." Castle laughed. "What's your rent?"

"I may have gotten a sort of discount…" I murmured and looked out the window. Castle laughed again. "So, what's going on between you and Beckett?" I asked.

"Oh! Nothing… nothing. We're just friends." Castle said quietly and suddenly became very interested in the steering wheel.

"Come on Castle, it doesn't take a detective to notice the 'thing' between you two."

"It shows?" he whispered worriedly and I laughed.

"Oh, sure as hell it shows. But don't worry, your secret's safe with me." I tapped the side of my nose.

"Good." Castle replied and turned a corner. After some casual conversation and more driving Castle stopped. "We're here!" he said brightly. He parked his car and we got out, slamming the doors behind us and we both walked over to the alleyway where there was still police tape. I showed the officer on duty my new badge and he nodded, letting us duck under the tape. I pulled on some latex gloves and threw a pair at Castle who almost dropped them. I took my time walking down the alleyway, trying to spot out any inconsistencies. And I found one. "Hey, Castle, look at the bin." I said and pointed at the bin near the end of the alleyway.

"Bin? You mean trashcan?"

"Bin, trashcan, hippopotamus, whatever you want to call it. Forensics have already analysed it. But do you notice something?" I asked him. He walked over and took a closer look.

"The dust…" he murmured.

"Yeah. The dust has formed a ring here, but the bin is a few inches away from it. Which means…"

"It's been moved." Castle finished my sentence.

"Exactly. But why?" I traced my fingers over some faint marks on the side of the bin, when I realised something. "These marks… they look like the same size of some large pieces of gravel. Do you think the bin was knocked onto its side in a struggle then put back by the killer?"

"Maybe." Castle replied. "Probably." he added.

"So if it was knocked down here…" I pointed to floor. "Then…" I didn't bother finishing speaking and I went on my knees and shone my torch under a 'dumpster' as Americans call them.

"Nothing?" Castle asked.

"Nothing." I replied. I heaved a heavy sigh and leant against the warehouse's brickwork. "We have no motive, no suspects, and no murder weapon. We're basically stuck." I kicked the wall.

"Hey, we've had plenty of cases like this. Something always pops up." Castle tried to reassure me.

"Maybe." I sighed. "And maybe we just need to look at the crime scene even closer." I suggested. "You're a writer, how would you have killed this guy?"

"Well, I would have walked in from that end of the alley because it's near the backstreet…" Castle stopped abruptly. "Actually, was our killer trailing Morgan, or did they arrange to meet up?"

"That is an excellent question." I murmured. "But if they did meet up, then Morgan must have known his killer because he hasn't made a phone call or emailed anyone for three bloody years."

"I suppose." Castle sighed. "We'd probably better get back. Beckett's gonna kill us."

"Yeah." I said and took a picture of the ring of dust with my phone and turned back to Castle's car. Half an hour later we were back at the Precinct where Ryan was eating yet again and Esposito was now at his desk after being with Lanie.

"Hey! Where have you been?" Beckett snapped.

"We were back at the crime scene." Castle said quickly and winced. Beckett sighed.

"Tell me next time before you go anywhere, okay?" Beckett looked tired with that I'm-at-my-wits-end look that my mum always used to wear.

"'Kay." I mumbled and went over to Ryan's desk. "Oh, was there any other information that Scotland Yard had?"

"No. Except that he disappeared in Slough and that remains were found in a canal."

"But if our vic is Morgan, then who was found in the canal?" Castle asked as he tried to balance a pencil between his nose and top lip (and failing).

"And why did the Yard just assume that it was Morgan?" Ryan asked.

"That's what we're here to find out."

"I thought we were here to solve a murder here in-"

"Shut up Castle."

"Anything else from the crime scene?" Ryan asked me and Castle.

"Not much. But we did find this…" I said and passed my phone to Ryan, ahem, Kevin, who looked at the pictures. "Weird. Did you take this one in Spain?" Ryan asked and I snatched my phone away from him as he winked.

"Pervert."

"That bikini really suits you."

"I'd better lock all my doors and windows tonight."

"Everyone listen!" Beckett almost screamed. "We need to get leads and fast otherwise this case is officially closed!"

"We need to know whether Morgan arranged to meet up with his killer or if his killer followed him." Esposito spoke up.

"And why was Morgan in New York?" Castle asked and succeeded on balancing the pencil on his face.

"Very important."

"Mhmm."

"I think I may have a lead!" Lanie was suddenly at Esposito's desk and waving a plastic evidence bag in our faces.

"What? Another one?"

"She's on a roll."

"Yeah, don't get in front of her when she's on a roll." Esposito said cheekily and Lanie slapped the evidence bag across the top of his head. "Ow!"

"Well, Forensics heard you were in bit of a situation so they broadened their perimeter and found this." Lanie gave the bag to Beckett who hastily broke the seal.

"A… phone?" Beckett held up the cheap hunk of metal and plastic.

"Looks like a burner one, unless this guy stole it from 2001."

"Shut up Espo."

"Why does everyone keep saying shut up? Can't you be more imaginative like shut your mouth, or-"

"Shut up Blake."

I shut up.

"See if the techy guys can trace any calls."

"Techy guys?"

"Shut u-"

"Don't you dare finish that sentence."

"Well, excuuuuussee meee…"

"I THINK IT'S TIME WE ALL TOOK A BREAK!" Beckett shouted (she does that a lot, doesn't she?) and stormed off to a small room housing an overused coffee maker.

"I'm sick of bloomin coffee." I groaned and slumped into my chair. "Are you looking through my photos again?"

"No." Ryan replied quickly and threw my phone into my lap. I rolled my eyes and swivelled over to Castle who was humming Elton John.

"I'm bored."

"Oh, I didn't realise." Castle glanced over at the break room where Beckett was sipping her drink.

"Ooooo, you got it bad."

"No I don't." Castle snapped. "And you've known Ryan for what, a day? What's going on between you two?"

"Nothing."

"That's what they all say."

"It's just playful flirting. And Espo told me he was still hung up over- who was it? Ginny?"

"Jenny. And they broke up more than two months ago."

"Jesus."

"So you do have a shot."

"Uh, I don't think so. Well, not me anyway. I mean, you can keep having your dirty fantasies late at night but-"

"Shut up."


End file.
